Endicott March Mania Invitational Day Two Recap

BEVERLY, Mass. - The Endicott men's volleyball program is hosting its annual March Mania Invitational with eight teams competing in the Post Center's MacDonald Gymnasium and Field House.  Two nationally ranked teams in the field in #13 MIT and #14 Rivier as well as Emmanuel (Mass.) and Kean who are receiving votes towards a top-15 ranking by the AVCA. 

On day two, the Gulls take on GNAC rivals Johnson & Wales (R.I.) and Emmanuel (Mass.) at 11:00 and 1:00 pm.  Endicott is a combined 28-15 all-time versus those two programs heading into Sunday's matches.

Match One: Endicott 3, JWU 2 (24-26, 25-22, 16-25, 25-17, 15-12)

Junior right side hitter Josh Anderson (La Canada, Calif.) tallied 14 kills with a .440 attack percentage and blocked a total of four attempts at the net to lead the Gulls to a win in their third straight five-set match of the tournament. 

The Blue and Green also got a clutch performance out of freshman middle Alex Wasik (Milford, Mass.) who struck six kills without an error on nine attempts and defensively assisted on four blocks.  He also served up an ace and had two digs. 

Junior setter Carter Roche (Clifton Park, N.Y.) dished out 36 assists to eight different Endicott hitters including junior middle Mike Coniglione (Glenville, N.Y.) who had six kills to go along with a team-high six assisted blocks.  Roche was also a factor in the blocking game with five total blocks while adding five kills of his own.

Sophomore defensive special Kristian Catalan (Sudbury, Mass.) had 11 digs while Aaron Jessee (Okinawa, Japan) added eight digs.

For the Wildcats, junior outside hitter Shawn Kennedy (West Barnstable, Mass.) led all players with 21 kills with a .395 attack percentage as well as contributing with nine digs.  Freshman Ryan Kennedy (West Barnstable, Mass.) was a factor offensively as well with 19 kills.

Defensively for JWU, Alex Vieira (Bay Shore, N.Y.) and Matt Jenkins (Damascus, Md.) tied for a team-high 10 digs. 

Endicott improved to 14-5 while JWU dropped to 6-7 with the loss.

Match Two: Endicott 3, Emmanuel 0 (30-28, 25-17, 26-24)

Senior right side Matt Devendorf (Glastonbury, Mass.) took over the match versus Emmanuel with 15 kills with just one error while hitting .636 to lead the Gulls to a 3-1 overall record at their invitational tournament.  Twelve kills from Anderson and another 10 from Osborne were integral in helping Endicott to a .352 hitting percentage in three sets. 

Freshman setter Tyler Bacon (Cypress, Calif.) totaled 41 assists, five digs, and three kills while Coniglione added five kills, five digs, and another three assited blocks.  Wasik displayed another strong effort with a team-high six assisted blocks with five kills and four digs. 

Sophomore defensive specialist Stewart Allendorph (Delmar, N.Y.) was one of four Endicott player with five digs which helped the Gulls hold Emmanuel to just a .129 hitting percentage. 

The Saints were led by freshman outside hitter Barrett Wingard (Dallastown, Pa.) and sophomore outside hitter Zach Whitermore (Whitehall, Pa.) who combined for 21 kills.  Senior setter Nick Updike (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) dished out 29 assists while leading the team with 14 digs.  Sophomore middle Wyatt Cooper (Ridgefield, Conn.) was a presence at the net with three blocks, including one solo stop.

Endicott moved to 15-5 on the season while Emmanuel fell to 8-11 overall.  Both teams were 3-1 at the Endicott March Mania Invitational over the weekend. 

All-Tournament Team:
Elms – #10 Jeff Vautrin, Fr., OH, Chicopee, Mass.
Emmanuel (Mass.) - #10 Nick Updike, Sr., S, Manhattan Beach, Calif.
Endicott - #3 Josh Anderson, Jr., RS, La Canada, Calif.
Kean - #11 Steve Vahalla, Sr., OH, Bloomfield, N.J.
Johnson & Wales (R.I.) - #10 Ryan Kennedy, Fr., OH, West Barnstable, Mass.
#13 MIT – #3 Matt Hohenberger, Sr., OH, St. Louis, Mo.
#14 Rivier - #1 Matt Bynon, Jr., L/DS, Burnt Hills, N.Y.
Sage - #8 Andy Fishman, So., OH, Cornwallville, N.Y.